No slow down at Showdown

Fans can watch six top fuel racers vie for title

Patrick Dove/Standard-Times
Spectators line the banks of Lake Nasworthy on Saturday afternoon to watch the annual Showdown in San Angelo drag boat races. The two-day event concludes today with the finals in each division. See more photos on gosanangelo.com.

Patrick Dove/Standard-Times
A pair of pro modified drag boats race down the lane Saturday during the first qualifying round of the Showdown in San Angelo at Lake Nasworthy.$RETURN$$RETURN$

Adam Sauceda/Standard-Times
Michael Logan gives a thumbs-up to his father, driver Marty Logan, as he and his stepsister Kinley Rice watch.

In a fraction of a second, Bryan Sanders knew his nervousness about Saturday's Showdown in San Angelo drag boat races had been warranted.

The Tequila Sunrise floated idly near the starting line while Sanders' competition in the first heat of the top fuel drag race crossed the finish line.

It wasn't over for Sanders or the Tequila Sunrise. Sanders, of Houston, a second-generation drag boat racer who has been racing for 10 years, had two hours and a crew of 14 to "take the motor out of the boat, take it completely apart, replace what needs to be replaced and get it back together."

Along with his crew, Sanders brought an semi-rig, three motors "and parts, parts, parts — everything but the kitchen sink," he said.

After repairing what went wrong in the first heat, Sanders raced in a second heat Saturday to qualify for the finals today.

"We've got six top fuel racers, two racers to a heat, and if they get a time, they qualify," said Jeff Riels, a volunteer who helps organize the race schedule. "The other races where there are more boats, not everyone will qualify. We've got 25 racing in pro mod, and only 16 of those will qualify for Sunday."

At final count, 109 racers were slated to put their speed boats in the water Saturday, and a good fraction of those would qualify for the finals today.

"It's elimination," Riels said of the finals. "So racers keep competing in heats of two at a time until finally only the winner's left, and it's anybody's guess who that's going to be."

The raceway is a quarter-mile long, and considering the top fuel boats can accelerate to 255 mph, the fastest of the races will be over in less than 4 seconds, and 2-second races are possible.

"It happens real fast, and a lot can happen really quick," said Sanders, who has competed in every San Angelo boat race since the first one six years ago. "You do what you can do to get ready, and you can blow a whole motor up in the first class."

"Slower boats" can take 7 to 10 seconds to cross the finish line.

"Drag boat racing is not necessarily about speed, it's about time," said Jenni Campbell, director of marketing and sales for the San Angelo Convention and Visitors Bureau. "The race isn't just against the other boat in the heat, it's trying to make the best time overall."

Phil Neighbors, president for the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce, said San Angelo's Showdown has the distinction of being the only drag boat race except the national finals in Arizona where spectators will see as many as six top fuel racers.

The speed, sound and power amazes even veteran racers, and novice spectators should bring ear plugs. Water plumes from the racing boats spray about 50 feet into the air, and almost as fast as the race starts, it's finished.

For 19-year-old Ryan Benson, a driver for Lucas Oil Marine Products who's racing for the first time in the pro mod, the speed and resulting adrenaline rush are what it's about.

"My dad was a racer. I was 4 when he started racing," Benson said. "My sister and I started racing when we were 14, and then I dropped out for a couple of years to support my dad and sister. I wanted to step up. I want to go faster, but Dad told me this is where I need to start. I can qualify with a 9-second quarter-mile."

Elimination races begin at 9 a.m. following an 8 a.m. church service at Spring Creek Marina, led by Racers for Christ Chaplain Craig Garland. Gates open at 7 a.m.

"Like everyone else, San Angelo's one of our favorite stops on the circuit," Garland said. "The service here holds the record for the most in attendance. The hospitality here is wonderful, the people are great and the races — everything is really, really well run."